Eastern Command (United Kingdom)
| Eastern Command | |
|---|---|
| Active | 1905–1972 |
| Country |
 United Kingdom |
| Branch |
 British Army |
| Type | Command |
| Garrison/HQ |
Horseguards Luton Hoo Hounslow Wilton Park |
Eastern Command was a Command of the British Army.
History
In January 1876 a ‘Mobilization Scheme for the forces in Great Britain and Ireland’ was published, with the ‘Active Army’ divided into eight army corps based on the major Commands and Districts. This scheme disappeared in 1881, when the districts were retitled ‘District Commands’. Fourth Army Corps was created in London under Lord Grenfell in April 1903.[1]
Eastern Command was established in 1905 from the Fourth Army Corps and was based in London.[2] Among the formations raised under its supervision in World War I was the 12th (Eastern) Division. During World War I, Eastern Command was based at 50 Pall Mall, London.[3]
By 1939 its headquarters was located at Horseguards in London.[4] At that time Regular Troops reporting to the Command included 4th Infantry Division.[4]
During World War II the Command relocated to Luton Hoo in Bedfordshire.[5] After the War it moved to Hounslow Barracks in Hounslow[6] and then, in 1954, it moved to Wilton Park in Beaconsfield.[7]
223rd Independent Infantry Brigade (Home) was raised in the Command, seemingly in September 1940.
When the Territorial Army was reformed in 1947, 54th (East Anglian) was not reconstituted as a field division, but 161st Infantry Brigade was reformed as an independent infantry brigade in Eastern Command.[8]
The Command was merged into HQ UK Land Forces (HQ UKLF) in 1972.
General Officers Commanding-in-Chief
General Officers Commanding-in-Chief have included:[9][10][11]
- 1905 - 1908 Lieutenant General Lord Methuen
- 1908 - 1912 Lieutenant General Sir Arthur Paget
- 1912 - 1914 Lieutenant General Sir James Grierson
- 1914 - 1915 Lieutenant General Sir Charles Woollcombe
- 1915 - 1916 Lieutenant General Sir Leslie Rundle
- 1916 - 1917 Lieutenant General Sir James Wolfe-Murray
- 1917 - 1918 Lieutenant General Sir Henry Wilson
- 1918 General Sir William Robertson
- 1918 - 1919 Lieutenant General Sir Charles Woollcombe
- 1919 - 1923 General Lord Horne
- 1923 - 1926 Lieutenant General Sir George Milne
- 1926 - 1927 Lieutenant General Sir Walter Braithwaite
- 1927 - 1931 General Sir Robert Whigham
- 1931 - 1933 General Sir Webb Gillman
- 1933 - 1936 Lieutenant General Sir Cyril Deverell
- 1936 - 1938 Lieutenant General Sir Edmund Ironside
- 1938 - 1941 Lieutenant General Sir Guy Williams
- 1941 - 1942 Lieutenant General Laurence Carr
- April 1942 - August 1942 Lieutenant General Sir Kenneth Anderson
- September 1942 - January 1944 Lieutenant General Sir James Gammell
- January 1944 - December 1944 Lieutenant General Sir Kenneth Anderson
- December 1944 - August 1945 Lieutenant General Sir Alan Cunningham
- 1945 - 1947 Lieutenant General Sir Oliver Leese
- 1947 - 1950 General Sir Evelyn Barker
- 1950 - 1952 General Sir Gerald Templer
- 1952 - 1953 Lieutenant General Sir George Erskine
- 1953 - 1954 Lieutenant General Sir Geoffrey Bourne
- 1954 - 1956 Lieutenant General Sir Francis Festing
- 1956 - 1959 Lieutenant General Sir Charles Coleman
- 1959 - 1960 Lieutenant General Sir James Cassels
- 1960 - 1961 General Sir Gerald Lathbury
- 1962 - 1965 Lieutenant General Sir Roderick McLeod
- 1965 - 1966 Lieutenant General Sir George Cole
- 1966 - 1968 Lieutenant General Sir David Peel Yates
References
- ↑ The London Gazette: no. 27545. p. 2527. 21 April 1903. Retrieved 17 August 2013.
- ↑ Whitaker's Almanack 1905
- ↑ Jeffery, p. 198
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Patriot Files
- ↑ Discover Bedfordshire
- ↑ TA Heathcote, The British Field Marshals 1736-1997, Pen & Sword Books, Published 1999, ISBN 0-85052-696-5, Page 120
- ↑ Subterranea Britannica
- ↑ Watson, TA 1947.
- ↑ Whitaker's Almanacks 1905 - 1972
- ↑ Eastern Command at Regiments.org
- ↑ Army Commands
Sources
- Jeffery, Keith (2006). Field Marshal Sir Henry Wilson: A Political Soldier. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-820358-2.